The winds picked up a bit overnight and shifted to the south making the lagoon a little rougher than usual. This also has the effect of causing the Odyssey to swing more on its mooring. But, none of this has effected the divers or the diving schedule.
As we wake and get started, Mike has the boat underway for our first dive of the day, the Hoki Maru. This is Alex’s favourite dive in the lagoon because the holds are packed full of Nissan trucks and earth moving equipment including a bulldozer perched precariously on the hold I-beams and a steam roller leaning up against it. This arrangement always generates a word of caution during the breifing,
remember, these have been underwater over seventy years and you probably want to avoid swimming underneath them.
The ship is rather small so we tried to spread out the groups so everyone was not in the hold at the same time; it sort of worked. But, everyone had the opportunity to see the sites as well as others on the wreck. Alex, Steve and I were even visited by a shark, although briefly.
When everyone was back aboard, it was time to move on to one of the signature wrecks in the lagoon, the Fujikawa Maru. This is one of Ann’s favourite dive sites here and it never fails to amaze me. It is covered in soft corals, anemones and marine life galore. Schools of small fish are everywhere as are schools of jack and even sharks. One of the holds contains Japanese zero and later plane bodies which makes for amazing photographs and an interesting dive.
During our visit to the wreck in 2012, we noted that the support beams for the superstructure looked weak and were sagging, especially in the engine room area. Well time had taken its toll because the superstructure cratered in the middle leaving the engine room a hazardous place with debris everywhere. Chuck noted that a large section of deck plate hung over the middle like the sword of Damastclies suspended by only a cable. This scene is sad because it leaves R2D2 buried in the bottom of the engine room below the rubble. According to the local dive masters, the structure fell all at once in February.
But despite the change in the wreck, it remains a stunning artificial reef with lots to offer divers of all levels. Everyone made 2-3 dives on the wreck and had cool diving tales to tell.
As the day winds down we find cocktail hour rapidly approaching. One question remains… will Scuba Steve make a night dive? He failed Ann yesterday but tonight, who knows.
